Yoshiko Kawada (17 October 1895 – 23 March 1970) (川田芳子 in Japanese, or かわだ よしこ in kana) was a Japanese actress on stage, and in silent and sound films.
Yoshiko Kawada | |
|---|---|
 Yoshiko Kawada in the 1920s | |
| Born | 17 October 1895 Furumachi, Niigata City |
| Died | 23 March 1970 Sōka |
| Other names | Yoko Kawakami (stage name) |
| Occupation | Actress |
Early life
editKawada was born in Furumachi, Niigata City. She trained as a geisha in Tokyo, then joined the theatre troupe of Sada Yacco.[1]
Career
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Kawada made her stage debut at Tokyo's Imperial Theatre, under the stage name Yoko Kawakami ("Kawakami" was the family name of Sada Yacco's late husband, Kawakami Otojirō).[1] She was popular in Japanese silent films in the 1920s[2][3] and in early sound films in the 1930s,[4] with over a hundred screen credits. She was one of the highest-paid actresses in Japan, according to a 1925 report.[5]
Kawada's first film role was in Shima no onna (Island Woman, 1920), directed by Henry Kotani for the Shochiku studio;[6][7] her last was in Kane no naru oka - Dai sanhen: Kuro no maki (1949). She often played mothers, including in Akeyuku Sora (The Dawning Sky, 1929), directed by Torajirō Saitō, in which she played a poor widowed mother separated from her only child; they reunite years later, after the mother finds a new life in churchwork.[8] She initially retired from screen acting in 1935, after her starring role in Haha no ai (Mother's Love); but she had roles in two films after World War II.
Personal life
editKawada adopted a daughter; she was also known to be kind to Hachiko, a famous dog in Tokyo.[9] Kawada died in 1970, at the age of 74, in Sōka.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ a b Downer, Lesley (2003). Madame Sadayakko : the geisha who bewitched the West. New York, N.Y.: Gotham Books. ISBN 1-59240-005-1. OCLC 51022849.
- ^ J.N.P. (September 1926). "In the Kingdom of the Silver Screen". Japan Overseas Travel Magazine. 15, 16 (9): 15.
- ^ "Japan's Favorite Film Stars". Intelligencer Journal. 15 October 1926. p. 3. Retrieved 7 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Most Popular Japanese Screen Actress". Chattanooga Daily Times. 25 November 1934. p. 34. Retrieved 7 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Stage Salaries in Japan Higher than Film Pay". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. 28 June 1925. p. 15. Retrieved 7 November 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Anderson, Joseph L.; Richie, Donald (5 June 2018). The Japanese Film: Art and Industry - Expanded Edition. Princeton University Press. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-691-18746-4.
- ^ McDonald, Keiko I. (1994). Japanese Classical Theater in Films. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. pp. 35–36. ISBN 978-0-8386-3502-5.
- ^ Scanlon, Hayley. "Yoshiko Kawada". Windows on Worlds. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
- ^ "Hachiko comes alive in "Pawprints In Japan"". Vicki Wong & Hachi. 10 July 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2022.